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Let’s Have Net Neutrality and More Investment

A wise Federal Communications Commission chairman noted that “the best decision government ever made with respect to the internet was … NOT to impose regulation on it.” Who said that? Republican Chairman Ajit Pai? Republican Chairman Kevin Martin? No, it was Bill Kennard, the Democratic chairman appointed by President Bill Clinton, wrote USTelecom CEO Jonathan Spalter in a new op-ed posted today on the online news site Morning Consult.

In the piece, Spalter argues that the “Title II,” utility-style regulations that the FCC relied on in 2015 when it approved the Open Internet Order are bad for our pro-innovation economy because they raise the specter of more regulation. As Spalter noted in the piece, “Title II of the Communications Act has 48 Sections, with more than 225 subsections. In the FCC’s “Common Carrier Services” rules, there are 20 sections, with almost 1,500 subsections. The agency left open the option to cherry-pick regulations that cover everything from rate regulation, to the filing of tariffs, telephone operator services and a host of other outdated obligations.”

Internet service providers support net neutrality, including no blocking, throttling or unfair traffic prioritization. Consumers deserve permanent, enforceable net neutrality protections that don’t depend who’s sitting in the White House or in the top seat at the FCC. We should be able to have net neutrality protections that don’t create barriers to future investment by ISPs.